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Upon Further Review 2013: Offense vs Notre Dame

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By Brian — September 11th, 2013 at 5:13 PM — 107 comments
Filed under:
  • 2013 notre dame
  • al borges evil genius
  • devin funchess
  • devin gardner
  • devin gardner is formidable
  • drew dileo
  • fitzgerald toussaint
  • jake butt
  • jeremy gallon
  • jeremy gallon and devin gardner share a brain
  • kyle kalis
  • upon further review

FORMATION NOTES: Michigan was split close to evenly between shotgun/pistol/under center. Notre Dame, meanwhile, was in a ton of four-man fronts until late, when they went back to more of a 4-3 look. Here you can see Shembo with his hand down and a 1-3-5 technique split to the strongside of M's formation:

dg-pocket-1

I know I've mentioned in the past that Notre Dame's defense is not really all that different from Michigan's, and this game was a good demonstration of that. ND prefers over fronts when they go to a four-man line since their SAM equivalent is Jaylon Smith, a fast light bugger. I guess that's kind of a big difference. The point is: ND runs a lot of four man fronts.

Here's ND's 3-4:

aggresive-1

The DL are head up on the Michigan OL, with the SAM over the TEs and Smith is over the slot.

This is the pistol. Pew pew:

false-mesh-1

Another 4-3 over from ND.

SUBSTITUTION NOTES: QB Gardner, RB Toussaint on almost every play. Derrick Green got in for two, I think, and M lined up Norfleet as a back once. The line was the starters the whole game, but when Lewan got poked in the eye, Michigan sent in Magnuson, not Braden. Lewan returned, so Magnuson didn't get a snap. He's your #3 tackle it appears.

Williams, Funchess, and Butt all played plenty; Williams went out with an injury, came back for a few plays, and then left permanently. At WR, Gallon (obvious) with Chesson and Jackson rotating more heavily than Reynolds, who may still be dinged. Excepting the Norfleet package early, the slot was always Dileo. Michigan never had more than two outside WRs in the game. On passing downs they filled out with Funchess and Dileo.

[After THE JUMP: slicing and dicing goes both ways.]

Ln Dn Ds O Form RB TE WR DForm Type Play Player Yards
M32 1 10 Pistol 3-wide 1 1 3 4-3 over Run Inside zone Toussaint 0
Shembo down as ND goes with a four man front. Jaylon Smith over the slot. I am assuming these are reads, not calls, because I want to believe. Gardner(-1) blows the read here as Shembo is way too close to the LOS to effectively contain and when Toussaint cuts backside he is there to tackle. I'd forgotten how hyper-aggressive ND's linebackers are. On this play they're both a yard from the LOS when the mesh point occurs. Kalis pops off onto the backside guy but at the LOS; he has no chance of creating a crease.
M32 2 10 Shotgun 2TE twins 1 2 2 3-4 base Pass TE out Butt 8
ND sends two guys up the middle and the line busts the protection. The free runner nails Gardner just as he releases the ball, but he steps in coolly and fires a strike to Butt. (CA+, 3, protection 0/2, team -2). Toussaint swung out of the backfield on this play and was wide open. Michigan would go back to this at a critical moment.
M40 3 2 Shotgun 3-wide 1 1 3 4-3 under Pass Slant Dileo 6
Day swims right by Kalis(-2) and gets in Gardner's face, so Gardner does not step into the throw. Ball is well in front of Dileo as a result; Dileo makes a great diving catch of a ball that is rocketed. The pressure had something to do with this. (MA, 1, protection 0/2, Kalis -2)
M46 1 10 Shotgun 3-wide 1 1 3 4-3 over Run Jet sweep Norfleet 2
ND moving at the snap, seemingly confused. This is basically a zone stretch. Day rips through Kalis(-1) and takes away any potential cutbacks. Glasgow(-1) fails to cut Nix. Williams(-1) and Schofield can't reach Shembo, the playside end, who strings it out. Schofield eventually runs around Williams, displaying impressive agility, to get in position to block a LB, but it's for naught, as Norfleet has to head outside with no real creases. Kerridge(+1) got a thumping cut block on a linebacker that no one could use.
M48 2 8 Ace 1 2 2 4-3 under Pass PA Hitch Reynolds 11
Kalis(-2) again whipped by Day, who gets immediate pressure. Should have recruited that dude. Aggressive LB comes to the LOS and then comes on a delayed blitz once he sees the PA; Toussaint(-1) does not get to him. Gardner gets off an amazing throw on which he doesn't square his shoulders, set his feet, or even turn away from the sideline that is perfectly timed and placed to Reynolds for the first down. Wow. (DO+, 3, protection 0/3, Kalis -2, Toussaint -1)
O43 1 10 Shotgun 3-wide 1 1 3 4-3 even Run Reverse Gallon 15
Similar to last week's with Kerridge(+1) stalking the backside end and sealing him away to get Michigan the corner. Kalis(+1) releases and then turns backside to wall off anyone who shows, and blows up Day. Gardner(+1) gets an excellent block on the backside corner; Schofield(-1) helps with that but should pick off the safety instead; if he does that may be a touchdown. RPS +3. Had it.
O28 1 10 Ace twins twin TE 1 2 2 4-3 even Run Zone stretch Toussaint -1
ND walks down a safety and jets him at the LOS as soon as M shows run. Funchess(-1) gets beaten inside by him. Williams(-1) and Schofield get some motion on Shembo but no seal and Williams does not pop out when the LB flows hard, he comes through. Kalis did not help on the backup DT, who ND is just playing as a second DT now, and Miller(-1) gets blown yards in the backfield. Toussaint has no hope. RPS -1.
O29 2 11 I-Form twins 2 1 2 4-3 even Run Counter pitch Norfleet 2
Norfleet the back. Jackson(-2) has a really easy job to seal Smith inside since he is stepping to the fake and fails. Y U NO CHESSON. RPS +1; this should have picked up a first down.
O27 3 9 Shotgun 3-wide 1 1 3 3-3-5 nickel Pass Throwaway N/A Inc
ND sends six. Miller and Kalis double Day momentarily has he threatens to split them, which gives avenues for two guys up the middle. Toussaint can only pick off one of them and not that well, leaving a free runner to the inside. Gardner tries to spin out of the pocket like he does, turns around to find another guy in his face, and manages to throw it away. (PR, N/A, protection 0/2, Toussaint -1, team -1)
Drive Notes: FG(44), 3-0, 9 min 1st Q.
Ln Dn Ds O Form RB TE WR D Form Type Play Player Yards
M23 1 10 Ace twins 1 2 2 4-3 even Run Zone stretch Toussaint 2
Michigan should have a crease here for big yards as they get a seal on Tuitt and Lewan(+1) bangs the playside LB, but Glasgow(-2) gets crushed back until that crease is gone. Toussaint(+1) makes a nice in-out juke that gets the playside LB to give up his force position, then bounces outside, where Jackson(-1) has immediately let the S upfield and outside, so he contains effectively. That LB peels to tackle as Toussaint cuts upfield inside of that.
M25 2 8 Ace 1 2 2 4-3 under Run Zone stretch Toussaint 14
ND MLBs roaring at the run action so fast that Miller has no shot at the MLB. Williams(-1) just runs by Tuitt on the backside. Nix rips through Kalis(-1) to the backside. Nobody is blocked back there. Glasgow(-1) gets blasted back by Day; Funchess(-1) handled by Shembo; Toussaint(+2) threatens to shoot between those blocks and then hops out, which convinces the ND force player to hop inside and give up the corner despite Shembo obviously having that gap covered. Nice play by Toussaint but a terribly blocked play that M got lucky on when an ND guy blew an assignment.
M39 1 10 Ace twins 1 2 2 4-3 over Pass Dig Gallon 61
No blitz; good protection. Gardner steps in and finds a wide open Gallon, throwing a 15-yard rope that hits him in the hands. Gallon spins through three guys and Chesson cleans up; touchdown. (DO, 3, protection 2/2, RPS +1). Picture paged by One Foot Down.
Drive Notes: Touchdown, 10-0, 5 min 1st Q.
Ln Dn Ds O Form RB TE WR D Form Type Play Player Yards
M25 1 10 Pistol twins FB 2 1 2 3-4 base Run Belly Toussaint 2
Gardner(-2) again biffs the read as the backside LB crashes on Toussaint hard and crushes him. Corner was open allll day.
M27 2 8 I-Form 2 1 2 4-3 under Penalty False start Miller -5
Miller gets jobbed here, as Nix jumping into the neutral zone causes him to jump. Refs -1.
M22 2 13 Ace twins twin TE 1 2 2 4-3 over Pass Hitch Jackson Inc
Batted by the DE. (BA, 0, protection 1/1)
M22 3 13 Shotgun 3-wide 1 1 3 3-3-5 nickel Pass Dig Gallon Inc
M picks up a five man blitz very well here; Gardner steps up and rifles it to Gallon. It's on target just past the sticks; Russell is up in Gallon's business like whoah and the pass falls incomplete. Looks like it could be interference but we don't get a replay so it's hard to tell. Because of the coverage Gallon had no shot at this. The rare (CA, 0, protection 3/3). I have no problem with trying this throw. It's away from the defender and picks up the first down if complete.
Drive Notes: Punt, 10-7, 1 min 1st Q.
Ln Dn Ds O Form RB TE WR D Form Type Play Player Yards
M25 1 10 Ace twins twin TE 1 2 2 4-3 over Pass PA comeback Gallon 15
All day. This route looks like double posts until Gallon stops and comes back to the ball when Gardner throws. Easy pitch and catch, and the DL was really thinking run and so not pressuring at all. (CA, 3, protection 2/2, RPS +1)
M40 1 10 Pistol twins FB 2 1 2 4-3 over Run Stretch toss Toussaint 4
Confusion as ND's guys take a slant step to the backside and Lewan/Glasgow(-0.5 each) can't decide what to do with the playside end. They should scoop him. Instead Lewan tries to seal and Glasgow tries to release, which isn't happening because the DL block Glasgow from doing so. Kerridge(+0.5) pops one linebacker, but the other guy is unblocked; Toussaint(+0.5) plows over him for some YAC.
M44 2 6 Ace 1 2 2 4-3 under Pass PA throwaway N/A Inc
Corner blitz sends a guy in on the backside. Gardner spins away like he does, can't find a throw he likes, gets in more trouble, and eventually throws it away. (PR, N/A, protection 2/2, RPS -1). PR because this is a blindside free run and the throwaway is a bonus, not a negative.
M44 3 6 Shotgun trips 1 1 3 3-3-5 nickel Pass Back shoulder fade Gallon 20
Beauty throw and catch against press coverage that picks up a first down and more. (DO, 3, protection 2/3, team -1). ND had sent six and got their delayed guy through, but not in time.
O34 1 10 I-Form twins 2 1 2 3-4 base Run Zone stretch Green -1
Hyper-aggressive ND LB shoots a gap and tackles in the backfield. Basically nothing M could do. RPS -2.
O35 2 11 Ace 3-wide 1 1 3 4-3 even Pass Middle screen Funchess 10
Would prefers something that tries to suck those LBs up by this does work as they get drops and the ND line bites. Pass is marginal, forcing Funchess to leap up and grab the thing with one hand; he does. Miller(-0.5) finds the same guy Glasgow(+1) does, and Glasgow puts him on the ground while Miller mills about aimlessly. Kalis(-0.5) didn't get an aggressive seal of the other LB, who comes through to tackle as a filling safety unblocked by Miller comes down. RPS +2. (MA, 1, screen)
O25 3 1 I-Form Big 2 2 1 4-3 over Run Iso Toussaint 4
Again ND is just ripping at the line at the snap, with the MLB meeting Kerridge in the backfield. Schofield(+1) gets a great upfield kick on Tuitt, possibly helped by the idea that Gardner will roll out. Miller(+1) and Kalis(+1) get movement on Nix and bury him, catching the other linebacker on Nix's legs; Toussaint(+1) cuts behind the Kerridge(+1) block to pick up the first down.
O21 1 10 Ace twins twin TE 1 2 2 3-4 base Run Zone stretch Toussaint 3
Safety rolled down and blitzing. At this point it's clear ND is firing one of their LBs at the line hard and having the other guy run parallel to the LOS to clean up. Lewan(+1) and Glasgow(+1) end up taking the blitzing S and playside end; end falls and Glasgow pancakes him as Lewan kicks the other dude. Toussaint(-0.5) runs outside the gap-shooting ILB and cuts up by that other ILB is running such that Schofield has no prayer of blocking him and he cleans up along with an overhanging safety who started the play eight yards off the LOS. Toussaint did have a cut he might have missed. RPS -1. Picture paged.
O18 2 7 Ace twins twin TE 1 2 2 4-4 even Pass Waggle TE drag Butt 9
ND ready for this, shooting Tuitt straight upfield and threatening to get a big sack; Gardner manages to get around it, barely. He points Butt out to stop him and then throws another dart to pick up a first down. (CA+, 3, protection N/A)
O9 1 G I-Form twins 2 1 2 3-4 base Run Zone stretch Toussaint -5
MLB shoots the gap and nails Toussaint in the backfield. RPS -2. Zero chance anyone could do anything but die on this play.
O14 2 G I-Form 2 2 1 3-4 base Pass Corner Butt Inc
Butt in the slot. ND sends six and is basically in pure man; Michigan wants to use Butt like ND used Eifert last year, throwing him a punt against a much smaller guy. Ace and I had an argument doing the podcast about if this was more on Butt or Gardner. I said Gardner, but now I think I'm wrong. It looks like Butt has plenty of opportunity to box the DB out and extend for a touchdown, but keeps drifting to the corner instead of high-pointing the ball. This allows the DB to undercut it. (CA, 2, protection 1/1, RPS +1)
O14 3 G Ace twins twin TE 1 2 2 3-3-5 nickel Pass Post Gallon Inc (Pen +12)
Gallon beats Russell on a post move; Russell first grabs him and then hits him early with a hand wrapped around his waist. Gallon can't bring it in as a result of the interference; he gets the call. This was a perfect throw in a tiny window. (DO, 0, protection ½, Glasgow -1) Throw was made with a DL bearing down as well as Glasgow couldn't pick up a blitz.
O2 1 G Shotgun 2TE twins 1 2 2 Goal line Run Speed option Gardner 2
Gardner(+1) checks into the speed option and then makes a cut to the backside to score. Reminiscent of Denard's 2010 winner. Gardner's check discombobulated the ND defense and created the hole as ND misaligned, so no blocks necessary. RPS +1, for having that check available.
Drive Notes: Touchdown, 17-10, 8 min 1st Q.
Ln Dn Ds O Form RB TE WR D Form Type Play Player Yards
M37 1 10 Pistol 3-wide 1 1 3 4-3 over Run False zone read lead Gardner 7
Finally Michigan is sick of this aggressiveness and does something about it. This is not a read, as Toussaint's mesh point is immediately aborted and then Toussaint(+0.5) goes to find a block. He pops the backside end and this would be good for the corner if Jackson(-2) had even touched the cornerback lined up over him. Gardner(+0.5) turns it up and that end comes through to tackle; still a nice gain. RPS +2, should have been a big one. Picture paged.
M44 2 3 Pistol 3-wide 1 1 3 4-3 even Run False zone read Gardner 35
ND shifts from a three man line to four. M shows a zone read look, and again I don't think this is actually a read. Funchess is blocking-ish Tuitt; Tuitt sucks down inside and gives up the corner as Jaylon Smith tries to defend the slot receiver. That's the corner; Jackson(+1) finally gets a block to eliminate a corner and let Gardner(+2) be fast. RPS +3.
O21 1 10 I-Form Big 2 2 1 4-3 even Run Power O Toussaint -1 (Pen -10)
As soon as ND reads run action those LBs are shooting gaps; Kalis meets the playside LB two yards in the backfield. So it doesn't matter that Lewan(+1) and Glasgow(+1) blew up Nix and got on the other LB; Toussaint(-1) bounces. That's a mistake as there's nothing out there for him and he may be able to pound it straight upfield for some yardage if the LB doesn't shed. Alone on the edge with multiple ND defenders he's hewed down. RPS -1. Houma gets called for a hold as he suddenly loses a blocking angle when Toussaint bounces; looks like a really weak call.
O31 1 20 Shotgun 2TE twins 1 2 2 4-3 even Run Inverted veer keeper Gardner 9 (Pen -8)
This is actually a read and Gardner(+1) gets it right as he yanks the ball once the LB overcommits. Unfortunately, Funchess(-2) has again turned upfield despite the utter hopelessness of that activity, so when Michigan gets a two for one on the edge (Tuitt is also out there) they don't get full measure because a safety can come down unmolested. Lewan(+0.5) had kicked a linebacker concerned with Toussaint; Glasgow(+1) got a great block on Nix one on one. Miller gets a phantom holding call after the play, and it wasn't a wrong number; there's no hold here. Refs -3.
O39 1 28 Shotgun 3-wide 1 1 3 4-3 even Pass TE out Funchess 5
Pretty bler about this playcall, which is all hitch stuff on first and twenty-eight. Gardner hits Funchess as the Toussaint wheel route is covered. (CA, 3, protection 1/1)
O34 2 23 Ace twins twin TE 1 2 2 3-4 base Pass PA comeback Gallon 13
Schofield(-2) gets smoked by a DT—guh--and that guy shoots up at Gardner. No one else is within eight yards of Gardner, though, so he steps around and sets up again. This gives Day time to beat Glasgow (understandable) and he's roaring up at Gardner now; Gardner makes a no-step throw to Gallon, who recognized Gardner's distress and started coming back to him. Telepathy, man. (DO+, 3, protection 1/3, Schofield -2)
O21 3 10 Ace twins twin TE 1 2 2 3-4 base Pass Corner Gallon Inc
Very, very token PA. ND sends only three, with a couple guys haning back as spies. Coverage is good, with a corner the only option; Gardner throws it. It's on target, could be a little deeper to keep it away from the DB, but Gallon has a shot at it. Actually hits him right in the hands, but he's getting bumped by the DB and he's grabbing various things so not a flat drop. Missed opportunity, though. (CA, 2, protection 2/2)
Drive Notes: FG(38), 20-13, 3 min 2nd Q.
Ln Dn Ds O Form RB TE WR D Form Type Play Player Yards
O23 1 10 Pistol 3-wide 1 1 3 4-3 even Pass Long handoff Jackson 7
Uh, okay, ND. RPS +1 (CA, 3, screen)
O16 2 3 Shotgun 3-wide 1 1 3 Okie zero Pass Corner Funchess Inc
Toussaint(-1) gets ripped through by Shembo as ND brings a blitz, forcing a quick throw. Gardner does have enough time to get it off without getting hit, and it's tough to tell whether the missed pass is Funchess stumbling for most of his route or Gardner just, you know, missing. I think it's probably the former since the corner route hits in a spot that is difficult to defend. YMMV. (MA, 0, protection 0/2, Toussaint -2)
O16 3 3 Shotgun 3-wide 1 1 3 Okie zero Pass Scramble Gardner 4
This time ND shows blitz and backs out. Miller gives a lot of ground to Nix, which is a problem, but does end up burying him once he tries to leap and bat a pass. ND has sent a delayed blitzer/spy up the middle; Garner rolls to the left, outside of Shembo, and outruns everyone to the corner. (SCR, N/A, protection 2/2)
O12 1 10 Shotgun 3-wide 1 1 3 Okie zero Pass Rollout back shoulder fade Gallon 12
A perfect back-shoulder throw low and to the outside where the short Gallon can get it but the defender may as well have taken the play off. (DO, 2, protection 2/2)
Drive Notes: Touchdown, 27-13, 1 min 2nd Q.
Ln Dn Ds O Form RB TE WR D Form Type Play Player Yards
M25 1 10 Pistol 2TE 1 2 2 4-3 over Run Zone read keeper Gardner 7
M blocks the backside end and the LBs shoot up like they do so the corner is a given as long as Jackson(+0.5) gets a decent block on Smith on the weakside; he does. Again, this probably isn't a read. ND has adjusted on this, sending a safety hauling after Gardner ASAP, but he can't do much to hold it down. RPS +1.
M32 2 3 I-Form 2 1 2 3-4 base Run Iso Toussaint 10
ND walks a safety down for an eighth in the box. Lewan(+2) gets some help from Tuitt slanting outside on the snap but gets under him and drives him way upfield. Kerridge(+1) gets a great lead block on the LB; Glasgow(+1) handles Nix one on one and Toussaint has a nice gap to hit. Funchess got a block I guess but his guy comes off to tackle by the ankles just as Toussaint is threatening to break a big one.
M42 1 10 Ace twins twin TE 1 2 2 4-3 over Pass PA Scramble Gardner 11
Another one of these token play action fake, max protect, unleash the dragon things that invariably feature Gardner sitting 8-10 yards behind the LOS without anyone even close to him. He doesn't have anyone open on this one, so when guys come shooting up at him and a huge hole opens in the middle of the field he starts running up, using a pass fake to get one of the ILBs off his feet and picking up the first down. (SCR, N/A, protection 2/2)
O47 1 10 I-Form 2 1 2 3-4 base Run Iso Toussaint 3
This is definitely a double A twist blitz. Glasgow(-1) releases, finds nothing, and can't get back to effectively block anyone. Miller does an okay job with Nix; Kerridge(+1) gets a good block on the other LB. Toussaint(-0.5) is in a tough spot and picks through the guy Glasgow couldn't deal with to get a few. I think he needs to follow Kerridge and pop through the line.
O44 2 7 Pistol 3-wide 1 1 3 4-3 under Pass PA slant Dileo 8
Pop pass to Dileo as ND shows a seven man front against 3 WRs and man. This pass hits Dileo just below his chest and does end up taking him off his feet, but it's an easy catch. Could have been better; decent. (CA, 3, protection 1/1)
O36 1 10 Ace twins 1 2 2 4-3 over Run Tackle counter Toussaint -3
Glasgow(-2) gets beat upfield by Nix badly, and Schofield ends up running into Nix. Glasgow then turns around, leaving the MLB unblocked. Toussaint(-1) could get zero to a couple yards by blasting it at him and instead makes things worse by bouncing out into Nix.
O39 2 13 Ace twin TE 1 2 2 4-3 under Pass PA Hitch Jackson 6
Gardner picks the wrong route here as Butt, who motioned into a FB-ish position, shoots into the flat and has room to turn it up. Jackson has a guy on him and immediately gets tackled. Not the worst; suboptimal. (CA, 3, protection 2/2)
O33 3 7 Shotgun trips tight 1 1 3 Nickel even Pass Sack N/A -8
Kalis(-2) doesn't come off a DT stunting outside and this leaves Toussaint 2 on 1 with the DE coming inside and the LB. LB picked up, DE not, sack. (PR, N/A, protection 0/2, Kalis -2)
Drive Notes: Punt, 27-13, 10 min 3rd Q.
Ln Dn Ds O Form RB TE WR D Form Type Play Player Yards
M22 1 10 Pistol 3-wide 1 1 3 3-4 base Run Inside zone Toussaint 2
Miller(+1) handles Nix. Glasgow(-2) misidentifies which LB he should get, blocking a guy Kalis is already going for and allowing the other to flow unimpeded right up the middle. Toussaint has to bounce. He gets a couple. Lewan(+0.5) had a pretty decent block of Day.
M24 2 8 Pistol 3-wide 1 1 3 4-3 over Pass Improv Dileo Inc
Gardner wants a hitch to Gallon; not there. Funchess(-1) is blocking a blitzer and lets him inside; Gardner has to flush. He holds, doesn't get called. Schofield does as Gardner rolls to him, which is nuts: Funchess literally tackled his dude and Schofield was absolutely fine on Tuitt. Gardner tries to throw back across his body to Dileo; gets his pass broken up. Sort of close to an INT, but would have been a crazy catch by Smith. (BR, 0, protection ½, Funchess -1). ND declines the hold.
M24 3 8 Shotgun trips 1 1 3 Nickel even Run QB draw Gardner 10
Excellent calls as the DL is shooting upfield; ND hopes to leave their ponderous LBs back as spies. No dice. Kalis(+0.5) and Miller(+0.5) kick the DTs; Gardner(+2) is fast and stiffarms one LB. Toussaint(+0.5) got a good block; Gallon's is just okay. RPS +1
M34 1 10 Ace twins 1 2 2 4-3 even Pass PA Post Gallon 41
This throw is just perfect. This throw turns me into a twee Korean girl. This throw. Man. Right. Anyway. Another PA All Day from Borges; Gardner sets up and fires This Throw to Gallon, who catches it despite being interfered with. (DO, 2, protection 2/2, RPS +1)
O25 1 10 I-Form twins 2 1 2 4-3 under Run Iso Toussaint 10
Safety rolled down to about seven yards with Gallon out. Have to get this fixed. Or not. This seems to be a plain old iso. Glasgow(+1) and Miller(+1) blow Nix off the ball, crushing him. They absorb a LB. Day immediately swims into the iso hole on Kalis(-0.5); Kerridge pops him. Toussaint(+2) has to cut back now, and does so decisively. He's flowing upfield really fast and the unblocked LB that results because of the two for one Day got is useless. This is what people mean by “put a foot in the ground”: make one decisive cut and run real fast.
O15 2 In I-Form twins 2 1 2 3-4 base Run Power O Toussaint 2
ND rolls down a nickel blitz. M runs away from it. Aggressive playside LB gets hit by Kalis(+0.5) effectively; Kerridge(+1) rocks back Day. Funchess(+0.5) got a decent kick. Glasgow(+1) blocked Nix effectively. Plunging safeties clean it up since it's 15 yards out.
O13 1 10 Ace 1 2 2 4-4 even Pass Waggle drag Gallon 13
No backside contain, Gallon drags behind the line and is too fast for any LB to catch up with. Gardner just has to toss it to him and then Gallon has one filling corner to beat at the two, which is easy. (CA, 3, protection N/A, RPS +2)
Drive Notes: Touchdown, 34-20, 2 min 3rd Q.
Ln Dn Ds O Form RB TE WR D Form Type Play Player Yards
M17 1 10 I-Form twins 2 1 2 3-4 base Run Iso Toussaint 3
LB meets Kerridge a yard in the backfield and convinces Fitz to cut back. This is possible as Miller(+0.5) and Kalis(+0.5) have gotten some motion on Nix. Schofield had also moved Schwenke but got tossed away at the end of the play to make his block less effective; Funchess(-1) got straight pwned by Shembo but Shembo first checks Gardner. RPS -1;
M20 2 7 Pistol FB 1 1 3 3-4 base Pass Zone read keeper Gardner -4
Same belly play they ran earlier; ND has loaded the box and blitzes an extra guy off the corner. Gardner pulls and then sees the blitz; Kerridge blocks the guy inside, who gets to the interior gap. No one optioned here. RPS -1. Gardner(-1) made it worse by trying to make a play instead of burrowing for zero.
M16 3 11 Shotgun 3-wide 1 1 3 3-3-5 nickel Pass Yakety sax N/A INT
Worst play ever. ND sends seven, basically picked up except Toussaint(-1)'s weak attempt at a cut is run through. Delayed guy is sixth and comes through the line, Gardner makes a bad decision, and then compounds it with three more. (BRXXX, N/A, protection ½, Toussaint -1)
Drive Notes: Defensive TD, 34-27, 12 min 4th Q.
Ln Dn Ds O Form RB TE WR D Form Type Play Player Yards
M25 1 10 Ace 1 2 2 3-4 base Pass PA Hitch Gallon 7
S walked down and the DEs pinch in. M goes with a basic throw to get the bad taste out of Gardner's mouth, and it's smoothly completed. (CA, 3, protection 1/1)
M32 2 3 Pistol 2TE twins 1 2 2 3-4 base Penalty False start Funchess -5
Man.
M27 2 8 Ace 3-wide 1 1 3 3-4 base Pass Scramble Gardner 4
ND seems to have everything blanketed here; Gardner(+1) beats Shembo to the edge after he tosses Butt away and scrambles for a decent gain. (SCR, N/A, protection 2/2)
M31 3 4 Shotgun trips 1 1 3 3-3-5 nickel Pass Rollout out Gallon Inc
Gardner has a problem similar to the OSU game last year, rolling right and not setting his feet. The pass is a duck that's short. (IN, 0, protection 2/2)
Drive Notes: Punt, 34-27, 10 min 4th Q.
Ln Dn Ds O Form RB TE WR D Form Type Play Player Yards
M25 1 10 Pistol 3-wide 1 1 3 4-3 even Pass PA quick seam Funchess Inc
Pop pass; thrown well behind Funchess. (IN, 1, protection 1/1)
M25 2 10 I-Form 2 1 2 4-3 over Run Iso Toussaint 22
I don't know what Toussiant thinks he sees on this; he's got a massive gap to the outside of his FB as Schofield(+1) escorts Tuitt, already slanting outside, well upfield and Funchess(+1) kicks out Smith. Kerridge(+1) buries his linebacker, and while the other guy may be able to scrape the cutback is dumb. He cuts back... and totally redeems himself by running through a Day tackle and using it to make a killer cut in the hole to shake the S. Racin' time. +2. Glasgow(-1) got chucked by Day as Day had his hands inside, in control.
M47 1 10 I-Form 2 1 2 3-4 base Run Iso Toussaint 1
No cutback as Funchess(-1) gets run over by a linebacker. Nix blows back Miller(-1), forcing Toussaint to pick his way gingerly. He manages to get around Miller moving backwards but now everyone is collapsing on Fitz.
M48 2 9 Shotgun 2TE twins 1 2 2 3-4 base Pass Wheel Toussaint 31
Shembo drops off as ND sends a blitz, and he chases Funchess releasing; Toussaint is wide open on the wheel. (CA, 3, protection 1/1, RPS +3)
O21 1 10 Pistol FB 1 1 3 4-3 under Run Pitch off tackle Toussaint -2
Not sure if this is on Funchess or Kerridge, but if I had to bet a dollar, it's Funchess(-2). He's lined up to the same side the SAM backer is on this and he lets him go upfield untouched. He then starts turning around, but finally stops and then tries to find a guy to block downfield. He then runs by a linebacker. A surprised Kerridge(-1) redirects too late and gets beat around the edge; Toussaint can't cut upfield and gets taken down. Linebacker Funchess whiffed on was going to end things anyway. Lewan(+1) had sealed the playside end well; this was there if they can just get it blocked.
O23 2 12 Shotgun 2TE 1 2 2 3-4 base Pass Out and up Butt Inc
ND rolls a safety up as well. ND sends six and has man free behind it; Gardner goes at Butt, who's gotten a step on a panicking safety, but he puts it short and inside. Butt manages to get his hands on it but this is a super tough ball. (MA, 1, protection 3/3)
O23 3 12 Shotgun trips 1 1 3 3-3-5 nickel Pass Back shoulder fade Gallon Inc (Pen +9)
Gardner still shouldn't throw this as ND is sitting on the BSF; these guys will have to learn to read the corner playing that and jet over the top. (BR, 0, protection ½, Kalis -1) Gardner got thwacked as Kalis was beat and Toussaint went over to help, exposing Gardner to the delayed blitzer. I've actually changed my mind on the PI here: this is weak. Refs+2.
O14 1 10 Ace twin TE 1 2 2 3-4 base Run Zone stretch Toussaint 1
Funchess(-1) tossed away by Williams. Butt doesn't help chip Day, he just releases, but I think that's correct. Smith is ripping down the line to prevent cutbacks as ND sends another guy upfield to contain Gardner. Those guys combine to tackle; Nix was coming down the line, being somewhat blocked by Miller. Push there. RPS -1.
O13 2 9 Ace 1 2 2 3-4 base Pass Waggle TE out Funchess 4
Tuitt pursuing the whole way, so no chance to set and survey; have to check down to a short route for Funchess. (CA, 3, protection N/A)
O9 3 5 Shotgun 3-wide 1 1 3 Okie zero Pass TE seam Funchess Inc (Pen +7)
Blitzers sent; Toussaint(-1) misreads it so when Kalis passes off Tuitt as he should, Tuitt has no one blocking him; he shoots up in the pocket. Gardner stands in and delivers a meh ball to Funchess, who got mugged the whole way. Why is Funchess trying to get outside after getting inside position on the snap? Bizarre. (CA, 0, protection ½, Toussaint -1)
O2 1 G Goal line 2 2 1 Goal line Pass Waggle sack N/A -2
ND waiting for this and has a guy on the edge. Kerridge gets yanked back on his route by the LB, no call, refs -1. Gardner really has no one and there is instant pressure; he tries to make something out of nothing and can't. Once too many times to this well. (PR, N/A, protection N/A, RPS -1)
O4 2 G Shotgun trips 1 1 3 Okie zero Pass In Dileo 4
ND sends the house, six guys plus a delayed one. Pure man on the outside. Dileo turns for a hitch, jabs outside, and then releases inside as the CB bites. Question marks appear over his head. Dileo scores. Welker'd. (CA, 3, protection 1/1)
Drive Notes: Touchdown, 41-30, 4 min 4th Q. Michigan's final drive is academic but perhaps illuminating so I'll do it.
Ln Dn Ds O Form RB TE WR D Form Type Play Player Yards
O20 1 10 I-Form Big 2 2 1 3-4 base Run Inside zone Toussaint -2
Nix rips through Miller(-1) and Kalis(-1) to crush this in the backfield.
O18 2 12 I-Form 2 2 1 3-4 base Run Zone stretch Toussaint 0
Nix gets under Miller(-1) and Kalis(-1) to run down the line and crush this play, Lewan(+1) got a good block on Day. TEs again double the kickout guy, grumble. Glasgow(+0.5) appeared to get a good second level block.
O18 3 12 Shotgun 3-wide 1 1 3 3-4 base Pass Scramble Gardner 14
Borges said this was a called pass, FWIW. Looks like a draw with how fast Gardner(+1) takes off. (SCR, N/A, protection 2/2)
Drive Notes: EOG, 41-30.

Heisman?

Don't be ridiculous.

Aw man I'm just havin' some fu—

Heisman doesn't cover it. MacArthur genius grant is more like it.

Wow.

Yes. Wow.

Jebus

Jeeebus

JEBUS

JEEEBUS

JEEEEEEEEBUS H FEIST!

I mean, look at that last one. What is that? How do you do that?

He did have the worst play in football history.

Yes, but since he's already done that he can't do it again. (Shut up, he can't.) On his other 32 throws he displayed an incredible combination of accuracy, courage, and telepathic understanding of Jeremy Gallon. It set off NFL scouts:

After witnessing Michigan's Devin Gardner's performance against Notre Dame Saturday night, I'm convinced he is not only capable of playing in the NFL but has the tools to be a franchise quarterback. …

Gardner showed the complete array of skills coaches find desirable in a starter. He capably made strong throws to every area of the field, while also showing a deft touch dropping in teardrops near the sideline. He flashed ability to make accurate throws on the move to either direction, which makes him a terror to defend on bootlegs and naked passes. Factor in Gardner's ability to execute the zone-read and some designed quarterback runs, he becomes a dangerous weapon in the backfield.

I think he's a little weak rolling right, but… uh… yeah. Holy pants. Just look at this—

CHART

Yes. The mother of all charts.

Devin Gardner 2012

Opponent DO CA MA IN BR TA BA PR SCR DSR
Minnesota 3 7(1) 4 2(1) 2* 2 - 3 4 72%
Northwestern 4 16(2) 2 1 3* 2(1) 2(1) 2 5 79%
Iowa 3 16(4) - 2(1) 2 1 - 1 4 83%
Ohio State 3 11(1) 2 5* 2 1 - 3 2 65%
South Carolina 4 16(2) 2 8 3 4 - 2 2 57%

Devin Gardner 2013

Opponent DO CA MA IN BR TA BA PR SCR DSR
Central Michigan 2 10(1)+ 1 1 2* - - 1 3 82%
Notre Dame 7+ 16(1)++ 4(1) 2 3* - 1 4 4 82%

Shane Morris

Opponent DO CA MA IN BR TA BA PR SCR DSR
Central Michigan - 4 - 1 1* 1 - - - N/A

The downfield success rate in this game was equivalent to Gardner playing Central Michigan. Or Iowa last year. Do you remember the Iowa game? Iowa doesn't because they did not participate. AND he put up seven "dead on" passes, which I'm pretty sure is a record since the paleolithic UFRs in which DO was CA and CA was MA. There were a couple borderline cases (I gave that Butt seam route on which Butt maybe had a tiny chance an MA instead of an IN), but… uh… wow.

Now consider the fact that this upcoming offensive line chart is going to be a shambles, especially in protection, and that Notre Dame returned eight starters from last year's #2 scoring defense. I think this is the best QB performance I've ever charted even including the worst play in the history of football. The Mathlete's numbers are a quick sanity check, and they agree.

Other than the worst play in the history of football, these are the negative plays to set against the embeds above and 90 rushing yards:

  • Gardner wasn't prepared for ND to sit on a back shoulder fade late, and got bailed out by a questionable pass interference penalty.
  • On a rollout he threw back across his body to Dileo only for Jaylon Smith to deflect it. Not particularly close to an INT, but a BR.
  • He missed Funchess on a pop pass.
  • He didn't set his feet and missed Gallon on third and short.
  • He probably should have pulled a couple more times on read plays.

That's it, against five touchdowns and almost 400 total yards against a defense that—yes—is still badass. I predicted that Gardner would be first-team All Big Ten in the season preview and that wildly surpassed all my expectations. Holy pants.

But it's not all sunshine and roses.

Oh man. Don't even.

Gotta do it.

Offensive Line
Player + - Total Notes
Lewan 9 0.5 8.5 Well, he's Taylor Lewan.
Glasgow 7.5 10.5 -3 Hello competition level.
Miller 4 4.5 -0.5 This may be okay.
Kalis 3.5 5 -1.5 Rough, rough time in pass pro.
Schofield 2 1 1 This is his destiny.
Williams - 3 -3 Not good, but…
Funchess 1.5 10 -8.5 …this was way worse.
Butt - - - This is a win.
Magnuson - - - DNP
TOTAL 27.5 34.5 44% Oof.
Backs
Player + - T Notes
Gardner 9.5 4 5.5 Also got a blocking point. Is fast.
Morris - - - DNP
Toussaint 9.5 2.5 7 Saved some bacon.
Green - - - One carry had no shot.
Smith - - - DNP
Hayes - - - DNP
Rawls - - - DNP
Houma - - - DNC, got a weak holding call.
Kerridge 7.5 1 6.5 Isos were a high point.
TOTAL 26.5 7.5 18 Bailing out the OL.
Receivers
Player + - T Notes
Gallon - - - -
Jackson 1.5 5 -3.5 Cost M  some big pickups on the edge.
Chesson 1 - 1 Okay, yeah, but he only really needed to block one guy and that was easy.
Reyonlds - - -  
Dileo - - -  
Norfleet - - - DNC
York - - -  
TOTAL 2.5 5 -2.5 More Chesson please.
Metrics
Player + - T Notes
Protection 32 21 60% Kalis –7, Toussaint –6, Team –4, Schofield –2, Glasgow –1, Funchess -1
RPS 23 11 12 We love him this week

So, first: to continue our Gardner wow experience: Michigan's protection number of 60% is very, very bad and he was +5.5 on the ground largely because he is fast.

That out of the way, there are a few positives amongst mostly exploding face here. Lewan was his normal self even against Tuitt and Day. Toussaint had a good day turning nothing into something, and when Michigan went to isos in the second half Kerridge was a thumping presence.

The rest? Urgh. But first, let's continue having the fun bits.

So you are binkies with Al Borges now?

I gotta tell you something. It's pretty cool.

Here's Michigan's first pass. This would be a short completion to Jake Butt.

wheel-open-first-play

Notice something?

wheel-open-first-play

Prince Shembo is checking Funchess on an in route and no one takes the flat. The wheel is unaccounted for. Al Borges sat on this almost the whole game. Toussaint ran one more swing/wheel route, which ND covered. That's one poke at it. Didn't get that coverage again. Okay.

Borges still had it in his back pocket, and after Notre Dame had pulled to within four, he pulled it out for 31 yards on Michigan's game-sealing drive. Shembo again chased Funchess, and there was no safety help.

"Al Borges evil genius" tag: deployed.

That drive up four points with ten minutes left saw Michigan head downfield with scoring intent. Borges brought out a little pitch that should have worked as Lewan sealed Tuitt; he took a shot into the endzone with Jake Butt; he kicked it off with a pop pass to Funchess. Nothing about it indicated Michigan was content giving the ball back to Notre Dame up one score. A salute to Hoke and Borges for preventing my heart from imploding with 1:30 left.

The rest of the gameplan was good. Michigan did try their counter trey but it got blown up by Nix; they moved to more isos late after discovering some success with them; they got Gallon a free touchdown as no LB was able to stay with him as he came across the formation on a waggle. Most of the stuff that didn't work was stuff that coulda/shoulda worked but Michigan didn't execute. ND got some plays with those hopped-up linebackers, but Michigan paid them back in full.

He occasionally got burned when the defense guessed right, as everyone does, and may have let Notre Dame get away with too much aggression, but in the end his gameplan put up 41 points while getting crushed up front. This or 2010 OSU, take your pick as to his best game at Michigan.

What is with all the unconvincing play action?

I'm starting to get it. It's not really designed to muck with the safeties or pull people up. It's focused on the defensive line, and it tends to end up with Gardner sitting in an absolute cavern of a pocket.

dg-pocket-3dg-pocket-4

The linebackers don't bite for a second on that. No one thinks this is a run. But Gardner ends up without anyone in the same zip code as him and can leisurely pick out which bomb to throw.

Somehow this lame play action move ends up with Gardner as well-protected as you can be, every time. (Almost every time.) I guess the DL have to respect the possibility of the handoff and can't rip upfield willy-nilly. The LBs read pass sets (Spielman will say "high hats," if you wonder what he's talking about) and aren't taken in, but the DL have much less information since they're engaged with OL. You can see them respect the RB on the long Gallon post. Tuitt holds up and tries to two-gap Lewan, and that's all she wrote for a pass rush on that play.

Toussaint didn't run for a whole lot of yards but scored a lot better than last week.

He made 14 yards out of nothing on one of his runs, and then made 22 yards out of… uh, about 22 yards when he cutback and put the moves on Farley:

Nice run!

what-are-you-looking-at-fitz

seriously-fitz

I kind of think you should have followed your fullback, though. (ND had a linebacker playside of Miller but there is no way he can close that space down.) To be fair, he does have a crease on the backside, but he's got a lane, an alley, a boulevard where the play's supposed to go.

Toussaint also turned some minimal gains into losses when Nix would beast on someone. He'd inadvisably bounce the ball into trouble when pounding it at a linebacker gets you a yard.

But other than those things—and one of the complaints here is that Toussaint shouldn't have had to have an awesome cut in the hole as he burst out for 22 yards at a critical juncture—Fitz looked good picking through traffic.

His blitz pickups were pretty bad, unfortunately. Michigan really missed Vincent Smith in this one. Not sure what they'll do about that in the future, since they clearly did not trust anyone else to be the third down back.

The offensive line got thumped? But the yards?

The tackles were quite good. ND got a lot of pressure; only once was it a tackle getting beat. They seemed to be blocking well on the ground. Michigan could not make that relevant, though.

The interior line got beat. Nix didn't do much on the stat sheet until two tackles on Michigan's final drive, after the game had been decided, but he is a nose tackle. Do not judge nose tackles on stats. Here's what happens when Michigan goes one on one:

Bleah. There were plenty more examples. Adding to the issues, Sheldon Day* was beating Kalis like a drum in pass protection early, and somewhat late.

It wasn't all bad for them when they could get doubles in—isos were actually pretty effective. That was rare what with the ND linebackers shooting gaps all day, and they struggled to cope. They all ended up slightly negative, which I'll take against this team in game two. They've got a long way to go over the next month.

The good news is that Michigan's done playing guys who ESPN projects will come off the board third and thirteenth in the 2014 NFL draft. Some Irish fans are complaining about a lack of production from those guys after they added some weight, but I thought Nix was everything he was supposed to be; Tuitt may not have been amazing but Michigan made every effort to run away from him all night (because when they didn't stuff like this happened) and he was often matched up against a pretty good player in Taylor Lewan. Michigan should cope better with the rest of the schedule; Michigan won't face anyone near their caliber the rest of the year.

*[Argh not recruiting Sheldon Day. M ended up changing their mind about needing more DTs late and grabbing Henry. He shows promise by Day is a good player already as a true sophomore.]

I've never seen a TE score like Funchess's.

Neither have I. He got pressed into all of the blocking TE duty when Williams went out, and that went really, really badly. It's hard to pick Funchess's worst block of the day. There are a half-dozen options, mostly guys under him instantly, leaving him in a heap. He had no hope of blocking Shembo:

Here I'm not sure what his assignment is because he's not sure:

He lets the end by him. He then thinks "whoops," starts to turn around, remembers that one of his coaches told Funchess he would personally bury him in a fire ant colony if he turned upfield one more time, starts moving downfield, and runs by the linebacker. Given Kerridge's response I bet Funchess was supposed to kick the end, but it doesn't really matter because he didn't block anyone.

And here's Ishaq Williams throwing him away:

Funchess couldn't block anyone against ND, which sucks, because he continues to flash that receiving ability. If Williams comes back, Funchess might see his job under threat from Butt. His blocking can't be worse, and he's a pretty good receiver in his own right. Michigan can't afford to have their tight end on the ground looking apologetic after every play.

THROW IT TO DILEO

I KNOW

He is actually like Wes Welker. If Mike Leach had him at Washington State he would end the year with 150 catches.

ALSO GALLON

Yes.

What a great player.

While we're here:

[Passes are rated by how tough they are to catch. 0 == impossible. 1 == wow he caught that, 2 == moderate difficulty, 3 == routine. The 0/X in all passes marked zero is implied.]

Player 0 1 2 3   0 1 2 3
Gallon 3   2/3 6/6   5   5/6 8/8
Jackson 1     2/2   1     3/3
Reynolds       1/1     0/1 1/1 1/1
Chesson           1      
Dileo   1/1   2/2   1 1/1   4/4
Norfleet           1     2/2
York                  
Funchess 1 1/2   2/2   1 1/2 0/1 4/4
Butt   0/1 0/1 2/2     0/1 0/1 3/3
Williams                  
                   
Toussaint       1/1         2/2
Hayes                  
Green                  
Smith                  
Kerridge                  
Houma                  

No flat drops on the young season; the only negatives were Gallon not bringing in a long corner route on which he was being harassed but did get plunked in the hands and Butt not boxing out on the other corner route that ended in a PBU. Michigan got two circus catches, one each from Dileo and Funchess.

Heroes?

Gardner and Gallon, obviously. Lewan and Schofield were great in pass protection. Kerridge was very effective when deployed.

Maybe not so heroic?

The interior of the OL got overrun, Jeremy Jackson whiffed some important blocks, and Funchess had about a 10% successful block rate.

What does it mean for Akron the future?

I will see any Devin Gardner hype you have and raise. He and Gallon promise to be one of the most devastating combinations in the country. The stuff I saw Gardner do against Notre Dame was unprecedented in my experience. He was firing every pass you could want with excellent accuracy despite staring down rusher after rusher. He just needs to stop making one big mistake a game… but even if he does, okay.

Gallon is going to clear a thousand yards easy. Possibly by halftime of the Akron game.

The interior offensive line isn't ready to take on the NFL yet. We'll see about mortals in a few weeks.

Devin Funchess hasn't progressed as a blocker. Need AJ Williams back.

Toussaint is pretty good. Just get him some blocks, guys.

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September 12th, 2013 at 9:30 AM
(Reply to #27) #52
Magnus
Magnus's picture
Joined: 07/17/2008
MGoPoints: 122923
That's great and all, but

That's great and all, but soon the best players on the team will be Brady Hoke recruits. During the Rich Rodriguez years, some of the best players were Lloyd Carr recruits (Mike Martin, Brandon Graham, Jonas Mouton, Stevie Brown, Steve Schilling, David Molk, etc.).

I see a trend here...

Anyway, Rodriguez recruited some good players, just like all Michigan coaches have. If those players make up a good team, they will always be setting records, getting drafted in the first round, etc. One reason Denard had so many rushing yards was because Michigan had enough talent and money to schedule and crush FCS schools, MAC schools, etc.

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September 12th, 2013 at 3:03 PM
(Reply to #27) #53
M-Wolverine
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In a well run program

Just about everybody, with a rare exception, should be upperclassmen.  The fact that so many of the other "non-dynamic" ones aren't is the problem.

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September 11th, 2013 at 7:22 PM
#54
MCalibur
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I'm all in, B

Devin is so so so so so damn good. If Jake Ryan can come back as he was and things shore up over the next month...yo. Don't want to get ahead of myself as is my way but damn, I can see big things this year.

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September 11th, 2013 at 7:26 PM
#55
San Diego Mick
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Just think about

how good we would've been in 2011 & 2012, had Gardner been implemented as the QB from the start of Hoke's tenure. It pisses me off for last year especially, maybe Bama game is still a loss but much closer, but ND & Neb. were easily winnable with DG at QB and later in the season the ohio and bowl game would've have been way more winnable with a more experiencd DG and Big Al opening up the playbook more, especially against ohio in 2nd half.

Also, if that was the case, Mich is in the BTCG last year and playing a Wisc team that runs mostly and we were solid against the run, I feel like we would have been 11-2 or 12-1 going into a Rose Bowl game against Stanford, alas. Clowney thing would never have happened either!

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September 12th, 2013 at 2:22 AM
(Reply to #48) #56
Magnum P.I.
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Bingo.  First order of

Bingo. 

First order of business as the new boss can't be to take away the only thing that anybody likes. 

Whatever your opinions on Denard's qualities on the field, he was the only glue holdling Michigan together during the coaching transition.

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September 12th, 2013 at 8:34 AM
(Reply to #48) #57
MaizeJacket
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I thought about that, too

I posted this as part of another response to another thread, but my dad texted me this during the ND game: "Hoke's a good coach.  Could have moved Gardner ahead of Denard.  Would have messed up team chemistry".

Sure, maybe hindsight is 20/20, but how do we know half the team doesn't tank if Denard is uprooted as qb and M goes 7-6 for two years? I'd say it wasn't the worst deal in the world to go 11-2 with a Sugar Bowl and 8-5 last season.

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September 11th, 2013 at 11:58 PM
(Reply to #30) #58
Lionsfan
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What kind of message does

What kind of message does that send if a new coaching staff comes in, replaces the previous Big Ten Player of the Year with a guy who has no real QB experience? Especially after Denard decided not to transfer to a true run-spread team. That would have been a horrible way to get the team on your side and a horrible start

And for 2012, why would they change? They had just gone 11-2, hung 40 on Ohio State, and 2.5 years of experience behind their starting QB. Booting him out for the new thing isn't the way to build a great atmosphere.

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September 12th, 2013 at 1:53 AM
(Reply to #63) #59
San Diego Mick
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How old are you to post garbage like you did

1st of all, you can disagree with me without needing to tell me to STFU. Also, DG is obviously a better QB, a real QB, unlike Denard, who shoulda realized who he really was and play an "athlete" position from the get go, that woulda helped his stock for the NFL way more. Denard was a turn over machine, especially when he threw the ball, he might be a great person but he's not a QB.

Your opinion is your opinion, not the gospel, so get over youself.

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September 12th, 2013 at 9:49 AM
(Reply to #66) #60
Blue2000
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Denard "shoulda realized who

Denard "shoulda realized who he really was"?  (How old are you to use the word "shoulda"?)  Is there anything to suggest that he held his breath, stomped his feet up and down and demanded to play QB?  Was it Denard's role to dictate which position he played?  Have you ever seen anything in his personality to suggest that he would have done something like that?  Isn't it the coaches' job to figure out where players fit best?  Besides, the above poster's point is correct; from all practice reports we saw in 2011, Gardner was not ready to take over at QB (he looked terrible in the Spring Game that year).  Besides, Denard had won B1G offensive p'ayer of the year at the position in 2010, and in 2011, we went 11-2 and finally beat Ohio State behind Denard's performance, which was the best we'd seen by a Michigan offensive player in the Game since Timmy B in 1995.  The offense functioned pretty well in 2011 and got a BCS win (although Denard admittedly played poorly in that game), and so keeping him at QB in 2012 wasn't a crazy move, and perfectly understandable.  The only real mistake the coaches made at the start of the 2012 season was moving Devin to WR instead of keeping him as second string QB.  We probably beat Nebraska last year if Devin had been ready to step in when Denard went down (and we would have won that game in any event had Denard not gotten hurt). 

Devin is absolutely destroying it, and I hope he continues to play his way into a first-round lock (although I hope he comes back for one more year).  But I can't imagine he was at the beginning of 2012 the same player he is now (if he was, and the coaches made him switch positions, that's insane), and he certainly wasn't that player in 2011.  And to try and make your point that he should have been playing this whole time based upon what he's doing during his 4th year in the program, while at the same time highlighting only Denard's limitations while diminishing his accomplishments and contributions to the program, arguably is "STFU" worthy. 

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September 12th, 2013 at 4:11 PM
(Reply to #93) #61
San Diego Mick
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Pretty interesting

that you feel the need to take a dig at me for using the word "shoulda", when you consider all the crap grammar being used out there with texting and twitter, you're an asshole and you should STFU.

If Gardner was made to be the focal point initially and had gotten the majority of the 1st team reps and the offense was geared for his talents, he might have done better and been better prepared to be the QB from the beginning....but obviously this is all conjecture on all our parts and we're basically guessing.

All I was doing was giving my opinion, I don't deserve to be attacked anymore than you do.

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September 12th, 2013 at 3:10 PM
(Reply to #66) #62
M-Wolverine
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SAN DIEGO FIGHT!!!!!

We were on pace to win the division before Denard went down. (We were ready to take the lead and take control of the game vs. Nebraska when he got hurt).  What more exactly did you want him to do? Not have one really bad game vs. ND? Guarantee Devin is going to have one really bad game before he's done here. It happens. Lose by 20 instead of 30 vs. Alabama?

Go take a look at the 2011 and 2012 Spring Games and tell everyone how Devin was ready. He wasn't. Not because he's not good; he was just young.

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September 11th, 2013 at 7:27 PM
#63
reshp1
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I'm curious, what is your

I'm curious, what is your reasoning on the first PI non-INT being a weak call? I actually just realized they showed a replay a few plays later of that play where you can see both the receiver and QB. The ball is very, very clearly in the air when the defender gets a second shove on Gallon. It wasn't a huge push, but it's obviously how he got such good position on Gallon to undercut and intercept the ball. I think it's a pretty textbook call. Good thing too, because I do NOT think the defender landed out of bounds like it was called.

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September 11th, 2013 at 8:13 PM
(Reply to #32) #64
Michigan4Life
Joined: 07/29/2010
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If both WRs and DBs

look to the ball, it is somewhat acceptable that there will be arm fighting for space because both have the right for the space.  It is a 50-50 call that is a ND PI at best but no-call at worst. It's one of those judgement call where it depends on the ref's philosophy.

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September 11th, 2013 at 10:13 PM
(Reply to #41) #65
reshp1
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Hand checking is one thing,

Hand checking is one thing, but that was a bona fide shove. That's how 95% of offensive pass interferences get called, I don't see why it's any different for the defender. Also, I don't think he's really looking for the ball right as he shoved. It looked to me like he was just turning his head as he pushed off.

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September 13th, 2013 at 12:42 AM
(Reply to #52) #66
Jonesy
Joined: 03/14/2012
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The DB was jamming the

The DB was jamming the receiver, the rule is you have to stop jamming the receiver when the ball is in the air, he continued to jam the receiver as the ball was half way to him, this was a very easy PI call, and the only reason I know this rule is because it came up in another game I was watching in week 1.

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September 11th, 2013 at 10:19 PM
(Reply to #32) #67
JeepinBen
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Notice which ref made the call

The clear view of why it was called PI is the view from the endzone up the sideline. You clearly see Gallon pass the DB, try to stop his momentum and the DB pushes Gallon. Gallon may embellish the push, but from the back ref's POV, Gallon was clearly pushed, it was actually great camera work to get the POV of the ref in that shot

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September 12th, 2013 at 10:17 AM
(Reply to #32) #68
ND Sux
Joined: 10/01/2009
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I agree it was PI

...I think Brian calling it 'weak' is like, sometimes these don't get called.  Personally I think it was enough of a shove to draw a flag, especially since the leverage gained also put him in a position to make the catch.  We probably don't get that call in South Hole, and certainly not in East Landfill. 

By the way...you do realize he DID NOT CATCH THE BALL, right?  There never would have been an interception...worst case was a FG attempt. 

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September 12th, 2013 at 11:01 AM
(Reply to #32) #69
Maison Bleue
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I agree the defender landed

I agree the defender landed in bounds, but  Gallon knocked the ball loose before he hit the ground, so the defender never actually caught the ball.

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September 11th, 2013 at 7:47 PM
#70
teldar
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Day

Was he the guy who tried to commit and was told there was no room at the inn for him?

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September 11th, 2013 at 8:29 PM
(Reply to #35) #71
R Kelly
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I believe that was Tommy Schutt.

 

I believe that was Tommy Schutt.  He tried to commit here, but was turned away, then immdiately tried to commit to ND, but they also said no (I think, someone correct me if I'm remembering wrong).  Finally he ended up at OSU and was going to be a starter this year before getting injured.  

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September 11th, 2013 at 11:58 PM
(Reply to #44) #72
Mr Miggle
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Not so sure if Shutt really tried to commit here.

He tried to commit to ND and was turned down. Then he wanted to visit here and was told there was no room for him. He committed to PSU shortly thereafter. Part of the speculation on why we weren't interested was based on his supposed lack of interest until Notre Dame pulled his offer..

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September 12th, 2013 at 8:51 AM
(Reply to #64) #73
Space Coyote
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At the time, I liked Day most out of the DTs Michigan recruited

Even more than Pipkins. Now, I'm not saying Pipkins won't be better or anything else, I just personally liked Day's upside, what he already brought to the table as far as technique, and his ability to play some nose and 3-tech. He's a vastly underrated player on ND's line because of the other two guys.

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September 11th, 2013 at 8:00 PM
#74
ann.arbor.lover
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Joined: 09/15/2010
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OMG Funchess

Before the UFR came out, I had no idea Funchess would be THIS bad at blocking guys. Here's to a good chewing-out by Hoke, a speedy recovery of AJ Williams and a wishfully rapid growth of Mr. Butt.

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September 11th, 2013 at 8:13 PM
#75
Blue Blue Blue
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well, last year I got neg-bombed for saying Gardner shoud have..

....have been better prepared when Denard went down against Nebraska.  Russel Bellomy?  he was no more ready to be out there than your basic JV QB.  Even with playing receiver, he shoudl still have been the (prepared) #2 QB when we needed him.

 

I still consider this the only real smudge on Saint Brady' s robe.

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September 12th, 2013 at 6:31 AM
(Reply to #40) #76
matty blue
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well, that's a relief.

i was worried that nobody would bring up russell bellomy.  you should talk about nick sheridan and greg robinson, too.

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September 11th, 2013 at 8:52 PM
#77
The Other Brian
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FWIW, the coach in charge of

FWIW, the coach in charge of recruiting at Sheldon Day's high school (Warren Central in Indianapolis) is a hardcore Michigan hater. As in, the "herp derp lol scUM meatchicken" Ohio State fan on Bucknuts kind of Michigan hater. He routinely ran interference during Michigan's dalliance with Day.

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September 11th, 2013 at 8:58 PM
#78
m1jjb00
Joined: 11/21/2009
MGoPoints: 5350
It's a pi

Some pushing and hand play is ok, but you can't push the guy out of the way with a full stiff arm.  

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September 11th, 2013 at 10:41 PM
(Reply to #47) #79
ppToilet
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I agree

But I'm a homer. From my vantage real-time, I called that a PI before the pick-off and before the flag was thrown. Just looked like Gallon was being pushed the whole route and the ref finally called it when the ball was in the air and Gallon gets pushed so the defender can get better position.

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September 12th, 2013 at 8:54 AM
(Reply to #56) #80
Space Coyote
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In technical terms

Yeah, it's probably a PI. But it's a weak call. It certainly isn't "not PI", it's just kind of that it isn't really PI, if that makes any sense.

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September 11th, 2013 at 11:05 PM
#81
OldLady
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Need a UFR for dummies!

Despite the fact that I just registered yesterday, I've been lurking on MGoBlog for about 2 years, reading almost everything.

UFRs seem awesome, but they kind of make my eyes bleed, and I feel like I'm missing the legend.  Is there a UFR explained or UFR for dummies post somewhere?  (Yes I googled and used the site search).

I've spent a lot of time looking over this and other UFRs and figured out most of the basics. From what I understand, essentially Brian looks at and grades every single play, grading most players for some basic things like blocking, protection, pass accuracy, etc.  Then these get collated into some cool and helpful charts. But I'm still missing some things...

After I finally thought to hover my mouse over the table column headers in the DSR chart and finding title-tag tooltips, I finally figured out what MA, DO, PR, CA, SCR, BR meant.  That was helpful, but I think an explanation of those abbreviations should be easier to find.

I have a few more questions, if someone would be helpful enough to take a minute to reply.

First, at the end of some (most?) individual play write-ups, there is a parenthetical tally, like so:

  • (MA, 1, protection 0/2)
  • (CA, 3, protection N/A)
  • (CA, 0, protection ½, Toussaint -1)
  • (PR, N/A, protection N/A, RPS -1)

What are these, exactly?  Obvioiusly the first is the assessment of the throw.  Is the second the assessment of the catch?  The third seems like a grade for the pass pro, I guess. Then individual grades?

Sedond, what is RPS? As in RSP -1 or RPS +2.  Rock paper scissors? A reference to the play-call vs defensive play being unfortunate or fortunate? Or is this some obcure football metric that you're all going to flame me for not knowing about?

Third, where can I get more information about DSR?  It seems to stand for "Downfield Success Rate", per the title tag.  Is this an MGoBlog stat?  Or is it the same as Football outsiders "Drive Success Rate"?  I tried finding out more about this, but came up empty? Any help?

Fourth, why does the chart aggregating receivers and passes caught have the columns 0-3 doubled? What am I missing there?

Finally, just a closing thought -- if some of this explanatory info could be aggregrated into a post and linked to from the top of every UFR, it might help a lot more people get more benefit out of them.  The work that goes into these is awesome, anything to make it easier to consume would be great.  Kind of like how every LiveBlog post links to the Chaos Mitigation post at the top.

Sorry for the super long comment!

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September 11th, 2013 at 11:56 PM
(Reply to #57) #82
MGoNukeE
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MGoPoints: 2061
This will be helpful:

http://mgoblog.com/content/upon-further-review-faq

Hover your mouse over the QB chart (Hennechart?) to determine what the 2-letter abbreviations mean; really it's just a qualitative explanation for each of Devin's passes. The number is, indeed, how difficult the catch is for the wideout to make.

RPS=Rock-paper-scissors. A measure to determine how well the plays put the players in position to succeed before the snap.

DSR = Downfield Success Rate, used to evaluate the QB's performance on pass plays.

Receiver chart shows current game on left, totals for season on right.

Think that covers everything. Anything else should be in the FAQ.

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September 12th, 2013 at 9:10 AM
(Reply to #60) #83
OldLady
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Joined: 09/10/2013
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Thanks for takign the time

Thanks for takign the time tor respond, and thanks for the FAQ link, I couldn't find that.  It's a helpful post, although it covers more basic football terminology and defensive schemes as opposed to explaining all of the abbreviations and metrics used in UFRs.  It would be helpful to add those to the post, in my opinion.

I'm also still curious if there is any more information about DSR.  Maybe a post explaining it more, its origin, etc.  Is it from Football Outsiders?  Or is it an MGoBlog metric?

Do you know what the parenthetical thingies are?  Particularly what is the second number in:

(CA, 0, protection ½, Toussaint -1)

That should be in the FAQ I think too, and I still think the FAQ should be linked from the top of every UFR, if anyone from the staff is reading this!

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September 12th, 2013 at 9:18 AM
(Reply to #86) #84
Space Coyote
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Joined: 06/18/2009
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I think there needs to be an updated UFR FAQ

And I think it should be linked at the top of the UFRs. I can understand how UFRs can become incredibly confusing for newer readers or ones that just don't read as often, and I think not updating the UFR FAQ kind of stops some of those readers from getting as invested. Hopefully something along these lines can happen.

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September 11th, 2013 at 11:22 PM
#85
mgofritz
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Joined: 08/31/2013
MGoPoints: 5
UFR New Blue

So I am realizing that my 8th grade flag football understanding of the game just isn't cutting it anymore.  So this year I am DVRing all the games and then rewatching them following Brian's UFR.  I have to say this is pretty invaluable info.  Its a very humbling experience realizing that I don't know jack about a game I have watched and loved since I was plopped in front of the TV in my #1 jersey before I could properly feed myself.  

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September 12th, 2013 at 2:44 AM
#86
uminks
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If

The interior line can improve through the season, this team will be pretty damn good. I expect the defense to improve through the season.

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September 12th, 2013 at 3:09 AM
#87
B-Nut-GoBlue
Joined: 09/30/2011
MGoPoints: 17135
If anyone of knowledge still

If anyone of knowledge still takes a look at this...I'm curious about the first Gallon touchdown and the coverage ND is and and "checks" to.  Is it man-to-man to start with and the H-back/Funchess motion to make a trips-right send them into a cover-3 ??

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September 12th, 2013 at 9:01 AM
(Reply to #69) #88
Space Coyote
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Joined: 06/18/2009
MGoPoints: 35079
Pretty sure they stay in the same coverage

They are just rotating the coverage with the motion. They still want 3 players of the 3 receivers on one side of the ball, otherwise there will be easy short passes or potentially getting killed on screens or outside runs on that side. It's just a way of evening out the numbers, so they flip the safeties rather than have the safety follow the U-back across.

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September 13th, 2013 at 12:07 AM
(Reply to #83) #89
B-Nut-GoBlue
Joined: 09/30/2011
MGoPoints: 17135
Thanks by the way, that was

Thanks by the way, that was my second guess but was probably trying to make my braing think it more complex than really occured.  (And yes, U-Back)

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September 12th, 2013 at 6:28 AM
#90
matty blue
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Joined: 08/01/2008
MGoPoints: 4565
gardner to reynolds

i'm going to go the other way on the 'not-set' flip to reynolds.  i know we're looking at results-based charting here, but that's a seriously dumb pass.  don't turn your body, don't set your feet, don't step into the throw...how often does that turn out well?  5% of the time?  10%?  more often than not, the throw floats and it ends up going the other way.  i'm guessing the coaches are telling New 98 to Stop Doing That.

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September 12th, 2013 at 8:57 AM
(Reply to #70) #91
Space Coyote
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Joined: 06/18/2009
MGoPoints: 35079
I tend to agree

But still a very impressive pass that displays good pure arm strength. Shows the potential, but I agree that the coaches are probably saying, "Hey, good job completing that, but here's what you should be doing".

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September 12th, 2013 at 9:08 AM
(Reply to #70) #92
reshp1
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Joined: 10/31/2011
MGoPoints: 25122
It was a pretty safe throw,

It was a pretty safe throw, IMO. Single coverage to the outside, same side of the field, on a timing route where the receiver makes his break with the ball in the air so the defender has no chance to break on the ball. Even if he floats it, it either sails out of bounds or Reynolds is in position to break it up as the defender.

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September 12th, 2013 at 9:00 AM
#93
Der Alte
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Joined: 07/30/2010
MGoPoints: 1359
I'm shocked, shocked

that two redshirt sophomores and a redshirt freshman all starting their first big game struggled against a talented and experienced D-line featuring two first-round locks. Last Saturday night I frequently had the glasses on Nix and Tuitt, and these guys are IMHO NFL-ready. Of course Miller, Glasgow, and Kalis had difficulty with them. More than a few NFL O-linemen will have difficulty with them.

So yeah, Brian called it as he saw it, and the kids didn't grade out very well. But given the way the game turned out, it was a real learning experience that's bound to benefit as the season unfolds. And that's true especially for Kalis, who grappled with Nix and Tuitt on one side of the line and got coached up by Steve Hutchinson on the other. Kalis can only get a lot better after that.

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September 12th, 2013 at 9:17 AM
#94
jwendt
Joined: 09/29/2008
MGoPoints: 187
Maybe a little harsh on Fitz

I think Brian's a little harsh on Fitz for the one cutback.  Yes there appears to be a lane, but look at Kerridge's helmet vs. the LB's pre-cut.  The lineback is filling that very large gap the way he is supposed to.  As soon as Fitz cuts, the LB tries to re-direct at which point he's moving backwards and Kerridge buries him.  If Fitz had continued into that gap, so would the linebacker.

Now, I agree, there was a lot of space to operate and Kerridge is definetly getting a hat on the guy, but I know in the past (at very low levels of pee wee football), I've taught RB's to head only which side of the helmet the defender is on and to cut away from it.  That's way to simple for how these guys are being taught, but I think Brian's criticism assumes that Kerridge is going to bury the guy which probably doesn't happen without he cut.

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September 12th, 2013 at 9:41 AM
#95
Hannibal.
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Joined: 09/09/2008
MGoPoints: 6297
Man, Funchess.  GACKK I

Man, Funchess.  GACKK

I wonder if he's going to be end up as one of those unfortunate guys who never realizes his potential.  This, incidentally, is why I'm not a fan of the WR/TE hybrid types. 

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September 12th, 2013 at 10:35 AM
#96
Zok
Joined: 03/24/2009
MGoPoints: 582
Funchess is a liab, yes i said it. way too much hype.

He's looking like Marvin Robinson / Furman Part 2 here.

Outside of the Air Force game last year what has he really done as a pass-catcher? If we aren't getting him rec's then we might as well bench him bc he sure as hell can't block. He should be getting 2nd or 3rd WR type production on this team instead of 1-2 catch every once in a while, if that. He has 3+ catches in a game I believe twice, ever.

"he won't learn if he's not in there" is BS too. He can learn to block better than what he is doing now in practice. He looks lost in blocking, like Nick Sheridan at QB lost. I'd rather have a guy in there helping Fitz out (a known playmaker) then a guy who catches 1 pass a game.

Again, physically he is talented and looks like he should be a stud at catching the ball but if we aren't throwing to him then he really shouldn't be on the field. Butt is already getting as many looks in the passing game and is a better blocker. I mean we already go to Butt in the redzone more than Funchess which is crazy given funchess physical ability but Borges has got to be calling it for a reason. We know that he likes fades and Gallon, Roundtree, and Butt now have gotten them called often. None of them present matchups like Funchess.

 

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September 12th, 2013 at 10:52 AM
#97
Space Coyote
Space Coyote's picture
Joined: 06/18/2009
MGoPoints: 35079
Funchess struggled in this one/ Typical UFR over-reactions

People's reactions are way overboard here. Is he a great blocker, or even a good blocker at this point? No. But he also just went up against one of the best defenses Michigan will face and was put in a position for half the game that he wasn't necessarily intended to play (Y-TE). People are acting like Butt and him are playing the same position, but Butt was consistently put in an easier position at H-back than Funchess was, and tasked with far fewer roles at this point.

The other thing people are reacting to is his lack of "production", as if stats tell the whole story. Funchess is doing things in the pass game. He is threatening defenses in multiple ways to get others open, including Butt. 

I agree that Funchess needs to improve him blocking, and he will improve. But all the people acting like he shouldn't play because his blocking struggles don't nearly overcome his other abilities are missing what Funchess role in this offense are intended to be and are failing to realize that there are a ton of things for a 2nd year TE to learn, both in terms of being essentially an extra OL and an extra TE and an extra WR and an extra FB. Maybe the coaching staff should pull back on the number of roles he has, though I'm not sure they can afford to with the depth at the position. But he's still essentially a young player in every phase of the game. He'll improve with reps and in practice, but I can tell you he is getting the reps in game he should at the positions he should, because he's the best at those spots for the given situation or injury situation.

Let's not all hop off the Funchess bus and burn it after the second game of his Soph. year at a position where a player needs to learn a lot and typically isn't forced into so many roles so early. We can all still like Funchess, have high hopes for him, and let him progress and get better.

On a side note, this is the one problem with UFRs and teaching people concepts and themes and general X's and O's. It's still just skimming the surface of reality. People know just enough to be dangerous as they say.

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September 12th, 2013 at 11:28 AM
(Reply to #97) #98
Zok
Joined: 03/24/2009
MGoPoints: 582
great points

I know you forget more about football from a hangover then I even know.

But it's just hard to hear and see hype on Funchess constantly (sleeper pick for a breakout game the last 10 games probably) when: A) he can't block and B) doesn't catch many passes (more than 2 in a game). Point A and B can't be refuted at this point (1 year plus 2 games).

Most valuable decoy award I suppose works but I don't see/hear people touting Funchess bc of his decoy ability unless its to defend him in an argument about his role. Note, I'm sure Funchess will have a Air Force type game against Akon or Uconn and the hype train will get more steam but against tough opponents his mismatch potential is needed. Gallon can't do it alone forever.

Real question, doesn't Butt play more H back bc he can actually block? If Funchess could block he'd get more H back duty right? I mean H backs have to pass protect, be a lead blocker, also run routes and catch passes. Sounds pretty complicated/versitile to me. How do you see Butt and Funchess' roles playing out this year?

I just think if Funchess was as good as advertised in the pass catching game he would get more looks. Maybe thats ignorant, but at a ceratin point guys who are good recievers actually catch passes. Norfleet is getting as many looks it seems like and he's been a WR for 2 games.

 

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September 12th, 2013 at 11:38 AM
(Reply to #100) #99
Space Coyote
Space Coyote's picture
Joined: 06/18/2009
MGoPoints: 35079
H-back is more of a defined role as far as blocking

You're essentially a FB or your chipping. Your not asked to down block, or necessarily to seal a DE alone, things of that nature, which is why Williams typically plays the Y-TE. Funchess is more of an H-back. He can double on the edge, he can chip, he can stalk block, and he can find a safety (sometimes). It's not that it's easy, it's that it's easier from a blocking and technique standpoint.

Both Butt and Funchess are traditional H-back types, because the blocking assignments tend to be a little simpler and it's easier for them to get out into routes. Funchess is getting more reps as a Y-TE because he's more experienced than Butt and Williams was hurt. If Williams were healthy, you'd typically see Williams and Funchess on the field outside of obvious passing downs. Funchess got exposed because he was tasked with playing a lot of Y-TE. Not that he doesn't need to be at least competent at that position if he wants to reach close to his full potential, it's that I think he is probably the second best Y-TE, if not the most complete Y-TE on the roster right now. But if he was playing his traditional role, I'm sure he would have graded out better in this game.

I certainly am not saying that Funchess didn't have a bad game either. It's just simply that people are too eager to hop on or off the hype train with players that bothers me.

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September 12th, 2013 at 1:36 PM
#100
samdrussBLUE
samdrussBLUE's picture
Joined: 01/21/2012
MGoPoints: 15356
Best 0 point day for a WR

Best 0 point day for a WR ever by Gallon!?

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